Anxiety rising with the setting sun
Assaults from unloving souls resurface
Shadows haunt my conscious mind
Possibly paranoia –
Losing touch with reality
I see the face of
my former lover
my current enemy
all around me.

Lauryn Hill just wanted reciprocity
but see, I just want your honesty.
Did you ever love me?
not some idealized fantasy
the scarred jaded being that I am
that couldn’t live up to your expectations
and neediness and clinginess.
We fell into a mess of codependency,
We called it love,
We pretended to be happy.